Vassal (game engine)

Last updated
Vassal Engine
Developer(s) The Vassal Team.
Initial release1996 (1996)
Stable release
3.7.18 / September 23, 2025 (2025-09-23)
Repository
Written in Java
Operating system Any
Platform Cross-platform
Available inMultilingual (English and 6 other languages)
Type Game engine
License GNU LGPLv2+
Website vassalengine.org

The Vassal Engine is a game engine for building and playing online adaptations of board games, tabletop games and card games. It allows users to play in real time over a live Internet connection, and also by email (PbeM). It runs on all platforms, and is free, open-source software. [1] [2] For example, there is a Star Wars Miniatures module, where players can play with up to three others in a digital replica of the table-top game.

Contents

It is written in Java and the source code is available from GitHub under the LGPL open source license. [3]

History

Vassal began as an application for playing Advanced Squad Leader . This program was named VASL, an acronym for "Virtual Advanced Squad Leader." In 2002, this was expanded into a generic board game engine now called Vassal, with VASL being changed into just one out of many modules for Vassal. [4] [5]

Available modules

Vassal modules exist for over 1000 games. [6]

In September 2008, Games Workshop issued a cease-and-desist order regarding the Vassal module for Warhammer 40K to Tim Davis, its maintainer at that time. [7] The module is still played.

Games Workshop has also issued a cease-and-desist order regarding Space Hulk [ citation needed ].

Similar projects

Similar engines for making board games include ZunTzu [8] and Boardgame.io. [9]

References

  1. ↑ Geryk, Bruce (August 2007). Green, Jeff (ed.). "Line of Attack: Your monthly guide to hard-core wargaming" (Print Magazine). Games for Windows (9). Ziff Davis Media: 92. Retrieved 3 August 2021.
  2. ↑ Ardwulf's Lair (7 October 2015). Exploring the Vassal Engine for Online Boardgaming and Wargaming . Retrieved 22 Jul 2021.
  3. ↑ "Official Vassal Website". Archived from the original on 2021-07-22. Retrieved 2006-08-18.
  4. ↑ R.Flaibani (14 December 2010). "The Master and His Vassal". Archived from the original on 31 March 2015. Retrieved 20 April 2015.
  5. ↑ https://vassalengine.org/about.html
  6. ↑ "Category:Modules - Vassal". vassalengine.org. Retrieved 2023-12-14.
  7. ↑ "GW V40k Legal Action". Archived from the original on 2021-04-01. Retrieved 2008-12-30.
  8. ↑ "ZunTzu - the Online Boardgaming Platform". Archived from the original on 2019-01-26. Retrieved 2019-01-17.
  9. ↑ "Boardgame.io - Open-Source Game Engine for Turn-Based Games". Archived from the original on 2021-02-14. Retrieved 2021-07-22.
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